Dr. Victoria
Pettis
278 Cavalier Road
Athens, GA 30606
E-Mail: vewpettis@yahoo.com
EDUCATION
2004: Ph.D. English Education, University of Georgia
1991: M.Ed. Middle Grades, University of Georgia
1988: B.A. English, Jacksonville State University (Jacksonville, AL)
TRAINING
2004. Learning-Focused Schools
1999. Writing Standards and Effective Assessment Strategies
1998. Planning and Teaching in the Block
1998. Characteristics of Gifted Youth
1998. Curriculum Program Development for Gifted
1998. Educational Measurement: Gifted Assessment
1997. Trainers for Student Peer Mediators
1997. Methods and Materials for Gifted
1996. Trends and Issues in Language Arts
1995. Cooperative Learning
1994. Designing/Assessing Interdisciplinary Curriculum
1994. Survival Spanish-Preparing for Language
1993. Meeting Needs: Cultural Diversity
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
College
Aug.-Dec. 2004: Assistant Professor of Education, Department of Secondary Education
College of Education, Piedmont College, Athens, GA
Secondary School
1998-2004: English Teacher, Clarke Central High School, Athens, GA
Middle School
2004-Present. Language Arts Teacher, Clarke Middle School, Athens, GA
1991-1998. Language Arts Teacher, Hilsman Middle School, Athens, GA
1990-1991. Language Arts Teacher, Clarke Middle School, Athens, GA
1989-1990. JTPA Instructor, Hilsman Middle School, Athens, GA
Elementary School
1988-1989. Paraprofessional, Chase Street Elementary School, Athens, GA
1994. Teacher, Clarke County School District Elementary Summer School
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
1998-Present. Member, Georgia Association of Educators
1998-2004. Member, National Council of Teachers of English
SERVICE
Profession
2005-Present. Clarke Middle School Representative, Clarke County School District
Continuous Improvement Committee, Athens, GA
2005-Present. Member, Gifted Committee, Clarke Middle School
2004-Present. Mentor Teacher, Clarke Middle School, Athens, GA
2001-2004. Mentor Teacher, Piedmont College, Athens, GA
1998-2004. Mentor Teacher, Clarke Central High School, Athens, GA
2001-2002.
Building representative, Georgia Educators Association, Clarke Central High
School
2001.
School Sponsor, Joynt Production Network Educational Programs, Clarke Central
High
School
2001.
Educational Advisor, National Young Leaders Conference, Clarke Central High
School,
Athens, GA
2001.
High School Graduation Announcer, Clarke Central High School, Athens, GA
1999.
Reviewer, Research in the Teaching of
English
1996.
Assessor, National Board for Professional Teaching Standards
1996.
Editorial Advisor, Reconceptualizing
Adolescent Literacy
1992.
Spelling Bee Advisor, Hilsman Middle School, Athens, GA
Students
2006.
Clarke Middle School Black History Month Fair: winners in display board,
design-a-T-shirt, picture book, and poster.
2000. Teen Pregnancy Prevention Month Poster,
Essay, and Poem Contest: first place and two honorable mentions for poster;
first place and honorable mention for essay; and first place and two honorable
mentions for poetry, Clarke Central High School
1998. Project Safe Place Poster Contest: Second
place winner, Hilsman Middle School
1997. Middle Passage Fine Arts Contest: 1st
and 2nd place winners in journals and prose; 1st and 2nd
place winners in 3-D sculptures; 1st and 2nd place
winners in poetry; and 1st winner in drawings
1997. The Art of It All “Why My Mother Deserves a
Diamond,” thirteen 2nd place winners and eleven 3rd place winners
1997. Student letter published, React for Teens (March 24-30, 1997)
1997. RespecTeen Speak for Yourself Letter
Contest: District Winner
1997. Letters, Drawings, and Poems sent to Princes
William and Harry after the death of their mother Princess Diana[1]
1996-1997. National Association of Student
Councils/Ruth Hollander for outstanding participation in the National
Student/Parent Mock Election, Hilsman Middle School
1996. “Thanks, Mom!” Letter Writing Contest: Two
winners and one honorable mention, Hilsman Middle School
1996. Student Letters to the Editor published, Athens Banner Herald, Hilsman Middle
School, Athens, GA[2]
1995. Recycling Essay Contest (sponsored by the
Athens-Clarke County Clean and Beautiful Commission): 1st and 2nd
place winners
1995. Holiday Bingo (sponsored by the Athens Banner Herald)[3]
1995. Student Letters to the Editor published, Athens Banner Herald, Hilsman Middle
School, Athens, GA[4]
1995. “Faith, Family, and Community Renewing the
Village Tradition” Essay and Poster Contest, University of Georgia, Office of
Minority Services and Programs: 1st, 2nd, and 3rd
place winners in essay; and 1st, 2nd, and 3rd
place winners in poster
1994. News for Kids, The Atlanta Journal/ The Atlanta Constitution: Student questions
published and answered [5]
1992. Letters to the Editor, 65 letters published in Athens Daily News[6]
AWARDS AND RECOGNITION
Conference Presentations
Pettis, V.E. (2003, November). Race talk in a teacher book club. Poster session presented at the annual meeting of the National Council of Teachers of English, San Francisco.
Pettis, V.E. (2003, April). Race talk in a teacher book club. Roundtable presented at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Chicago.
Smagorinsky, P. and Pettis, V.E..
(2003, January). Composing multimedia texts in a high school architectural
class. Paper presented at the annual QUIG Conference on Interdisciplinary
Qualitative Studies, Athens, GA.
Awards
2004. The University of Georgia: Amazing Students,
University of Georgia
2004. 2004 Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers
2003. Notable Contributions to Clarke Central High
School (5 Years), Clarke Central High School, Athens, GA
2002-2003. Golden Apple Award, Clarke Central High School, Athens, GA
2001. Favorite Teacher, Berry College, Mount
Berry, GA[7]
2000. Who’s Who in 2000
1998. 1998 Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers
1997-1998. Teacher of the Year, Hilsman Middle
School Athens, GA) (1997-1998)
1997. Recognition of Excellence Award, Department
of Minority Services and Programs, University of Georgia
1997. Outstanding Teaching in Language Arts,
Hilsman Middle School, Athens, GA
1997. Excellent Attendance, Hilsman Middle School,
Athens, GA
1995-1996. Golden Apple Award, Hilsman Middle
School, Athens, GA
Grants
2005-2006.
Foundation for Excellence Classroom Grant, $500 for Classroom Library: Engaging
Titles for Reluctant Readers
2002-2004. National Council of Teachers of English
Research Foundation Cultivating New Voices of Scholars of Color Grant Program, financial
support for dissertation research
2002. Teaching Tolerance Grant from the Southern
Poverty Law Center (Montgomery, AL), $1,000 to support dissertation research
2001-2002. Academic Achievement Mini-Grant, University
of Georgia (College of Education) and Clarke County School District (Athens,
GA), $3,000 grant written on behalf of Clarke Central English Department to
purchase multicultural novels.
Scholarships/Fellowships
2002-2003 American Educational Research
Association/Spencer Pre-Dissertation Fellowship
2000. Target Teachers Scholarship, $500 to support education in Ph.D.
program at UGA
[1] In response, my students received a thank-you card from Princes William and Harry.
[2] These letters to the editor were written after students read a short story about Helen Keller.
[3] The student projects garnered newspaper article
attention.
[4] These
letters to the editor were written after students read a short story about Helen Keller.
[5] News for Kids was a special section in the Atlanta Journal/The Atlanta Constitution, which asked students to send in question reflecting their knowledge of news or world events.
[6] For this project, students were taught the basics of how to write a business letter, the format to writing a letter to the editor, and then were asked to pick a topic on interest, research it, and write a letter to the editor.
[7] Dr. Pettis was named as a favorite teacher by a former Clarke Central High School student, who was a freshman attending Berry College